Capturing the Cosmos
How One USD Student Combines Artistry with STEM
It’s 2 a.m. and first-year Lucan Rhatigan works diligently on his canvas — a plethora of paint bottles and dirty brushes lying on the table beside him. These precious hours are among the few he has to bring his vision to life. Despite these late nights, he feels more energized than ever, allowing his passions to guide him.
While Rhatigan only started his academic career at the University of San Diego one semester ago, he already plans to major in physics and visual arts, a combination that represents interests he’s had since he was young. However, painting isn’t the only niche that sets him apart. He also has an immense love for the vastness that lies beyond Earth’s atmosphere.
“I think space and the cosmos are just undeniably beautiful,” says Rhatigan. “I love painting, I love art, and I love the study of space, and I was like, why don’t I try to conjoin the few?”
He recently had the opportunity to meet Matthew Dominick ‘05 (BS/BA in electrical engineering), a USD engineering alumnus and NASA astronaut, recognized at a recent campus event for his time aboard the International Space Station and the thousands of photos he took to document the experience. From the vantage point of his bedroom window porthole, Dominick captured stunning photos of Earth, one of which inspired Rhatigan to create a new piece — a painting of the night sky covered in pink and blue light.
“This [painting is inspired by] a photo that [Dominick] took out of his window with the sun rising here, we have the aurora here, and you have a comet going by,” explains Rhatigan as he points to his re-creation of the scene from space. “I just thought it was a great photo just to sort of throw down paint.”
In addition to preparing this painting for display in the Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering, Rhatigan already has a featured piece hanging in the Donald P. Shiley Center for Science and Technology titled Gargantua. The space theme remains consistent in his work, demonstrating his lifelong passion for the field.
“That’s a black hole called Gargantua from Interstellar,” explains Rhatigan, pointing to beautiful streaks of yellow and orange light against a dark background. “When I was painting it for the first time, it really felt right, like something that was so perfect in the way it happened by combining two interests of mine.”
For Rhatigan, the sky is the limit. In addition to pursuing his artistic endeavors, he someday wants to follow Dominick’s path and see space for himself. Though in the meantime, he’s perfectly content honing his painting skills.
“I’m just super fortunate and honestly really humbled that I’ve been able to have my work be shown in [the Donald P. Shiley Center for Science and Technology],” says Rhatigan. “Honestly, I just hope to continue to do that.”
Kristiana Phillips